Neighborhood:
Belmont This neighborhood has remained proudly shabby thanks mainly to four icons of dingy, pre-hip Portland: The Pied Cow ((read more)google.com/?q=3244 SE Belmont St.,Portland,OR">3244 SE Belmont St., 230-4866), an all-ages coffeehouse and hookah bar in a beautifully restored Victorian; Dixie Mattress Company (3326 SE Belmont St., 235-5514), a dusty storefront that looks more like a Mafia front than the city’s leading mattress recycler; The Avalon Theatre (3451 SE Belmont St., 238-1617), which offers an excellent nickel arcade and the cheapest movie tix in town, and Theater! Theatre! (3430 SE Belmont St.), the DIY performance space that playwright John Guare described not inaccurately as “held together with dental floss and Wrigley’s gum.” Restaurants on the street tend toward the cheap and casual, like vega-rific Paradox Cafe (3439 SE Belmont St., 232-7508) and its polar opposite, Pine State Biscuits (3640 SE Belmont St., 236-3346), home of the Reggie Deluxe, a gut-busting pile of fried chicken, bacon, cheddar and an egg capped with a sweet, crunchy biscuit, which Esquire shortlisted as one of “The Best Sandwiches in America” earlier this year. On the opposite end of the dining scale, Genoa (2832 SE Belmont St., 238-1464) has been serving stunning seven-course Italian dinners ($80/person) since 1971. Shopping isn’t Belmont’s forte, but there are a few gems. Stephanie Sheldon’s Noun: A Person’s Place for Things (3300 SE Belmont St., 235-0078) pairs an exquisitely curated collection of new and used housewares and accessories with divine sweets by Saint Cupcake. India 4 U (3649 SE Belmont St., Suite A, 239-8000) recently moved its stockpile of spices and Bollywood DVDs from Hawthorne Boulevard, and Belmont Computers (4505 SE Belmont St., 236-5364) is by far the best and friendliest independent computer retail and repair shop in town. There’s no shortage of watering holes, all within easy stumbling distance of each other: casually classy Blue Monk (3341 SE Belmont St., 595-0575), hipster haven Aalto Lounge (3356 SE Belmont St., 235-6041), calm and pleasant Side Street Tavern (828 SE 34th Ave., 236-7999) and venerable Brit pub Horse Brass (4534 SE Belmont St., 232-2202). Not a drinker? Take your own mug to Muddy Waters (2908 SE Belmont St., 233-1923) for $1 drip coffee. —Ben Waterhouse.
Upcoming Events
Thursday January 15
Biloxi Blues
Profile Theatre's season of Neil Simon continues with the second play of his Eugene trilogy. We see Simon's alter ego, Eugene Morris Jerome, get laid, encounter bigotry, fall in love and endure basic training.
Theater! Theatre!, 3430 SE Belmont St., 242-0080. 8 pm Thursdays-Saturdays, 2 pm Sundays. Closes Feb. 15. $12-$28.
